There’s always two sides to a story – right? Well on the topic of net neutrality, that is exactly what Time Warner Cable is claiming.
Up until recently, the focus has been primarily on Internet service providers (ISPs) for accepting deals with companies like Netflix where, in exchange for payment, Netflix’s website would receive greater bandwidth than companies who haven’t made such deals. This, of course, would give these companies a step-up on their competitors and other services in general.
Here is where Time Warner Cable says we’ve got it all wrong. In fact, the cable company says it is the exact opposite – consumers should place their concern with companies such as Netflix as they are the ones who are doing the extorting. It sounds like a case of the blame game, but they bring up a good point; if Internet “fast lane” deals continue to be made, what type of consequences could result?
Time Warner Cable says, “…Google or Netflix could demand payments from Internet providers. Customers expect access to the most popular websites, and an Internet provider may have little choice but to pay up.” However, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has rejected this claim saying that, “such conduct is beyond the scope of this proceeding.”
Although it may be outside of this proceeding, the FCC will undoubtedly have to take all sides of net neutrality into consideration when producing laws regarding the issue – including the consequences.